


Somethings Last Forever

by blueseau



Category: Naruto
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Fix-It, Friendship/Love, In which Boruto canon does not exist because ew, In which they die together at the valley of the end, Love Confessions, M/M, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-06
Updated: 2019-08-06
Packaged: 2020-08-10 14:04:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20136676
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blueseau/pseuds/blueseau
Summary: "It's hard to let go. Even when what you're holding onto is full of thorns, it's hard to let go. Maybe especially then." -Stephen King





	Somethings Last Forever

_ It's hard to let go. Even when what you’re holding onto is full of thorns, it's hard to let go. Maybe especially then. _

It is such a little life that the two of them live, in the grand scheme of things.

Sasuke and Naruto are seventeen years old and looking up at a blue and yellow sky where the sun began to rise on the horizon. Their childhood feels like yesterday, when they would smile softly at each other as they crossed paths, Naruto on the hill and Sasuke on the dock, always at golden hour, when the sun made everything it touched a thousand times more beautiful and the whole world went quiet. It feels like yesterday, when they would meet up on the bridge for their missions. The two of them along with Sakura always arrived before Kakashi who was late, and sometimes Naruto would arrive just before him, a little less late. But sometimes he got there first, bright and early, and Sasuke would soon follow and they’d argue for awhile over petty things they’d hold grudges for years later. Neither of them could remember them now, not in this moment.

Sasuke's bloody fingers twitched in Naruto's, trying to hold on and feel them between his own, but both of them were fading in and out of numbness. Their pants were thin, slow and quiet.

And yet Sasuke cannot look away from those tired blue eyes, desperate blue eyes that have seen so much and shed tears so often. They look so dried out now. He looks exhausted and... relieved, if you look close enough.

Blood soaks their hands and Sasuke gets some feeling. It hurts so badly, everything aches and stings, but agony is a dimming lamp light when you're laying beside the sun. Even as the last of their power and energy drains, he can still feel the warmth of Naruto's chakra, in all honesty it's all he wants to surround himself with, to be submerged and engulfed in something called love, that he lost long ago, from this day forward.

Only they don't have anymore tomorrows.

"Naruto, we're,"

_We're dying,_ he wants to say, but they both know. This time there's no last minute rescues. No stopping the inevitable.

Sasuke wonders how they avoided death the first time all those years ago, as the rain pounded like bullets and clouded his vision when he stared into the sky, but when he collapsed and gazed at Naruto's sleeping face, he could see everything so clearly. It felt like ripping half of his body off, leaving the valley without him.

He's not going anywhere this time, there's too much he still wants, needs to say, things he needs to do with him, things of a normal life with the ones you love away from the shinobi world. It was stolen from the both of them, and it was stealing the last of their life now that they were used up and it was done with them. Tools, weapons knows as shinobi. There was truth to what Haku and Zabuza told them.

Sasuke thinks there are still responsibilities and goals he needs to fulfill. To correct the flawed system, to make sure no more children suffer the same as he did, that leaders don't exploit power and that there is no more oppression ending in massacre. He doesn't want to let go, he can't yet. It must be the same for Naruto, he still has to help so many people and teach them a better way, one that he wasn't able to teach Sasuke until it was already too late, and their blood flows. They've been here too long for their own good.

The only thing that makes this okay is the fact that they have each other. Sasuke knows if Naruto dies he will die with him, whether it happens naturally or if he makes himself. Death is a long eternity, he won't let him be alone. And maybe it's mutual, after what Naruto said outside the Kage Summit. Maybe Sasuke won't have to be alone anymore either.

There's something about being with Naruto forever, in their own infinity, detached from this world of war and chaos that makes Sasuke want to let go of everything.

Realistically, he thinks they should have died in that first real fight when they were thirteen. Maybe fate wasn't ready for them yet. _ Fate _ was a weird thing, Sasuke didn't believe in it, and Naruto swore he and everyone had the power to take charge of their own destiny, but there was something so profound about the two of them. They _ fit._ It couldn't have been coincidence that they survived their first fight, or that Naruto found him years later, or that they lay on this stone miles away from any living person in their last moments. It's magnetism that he can't begin to explain, it's a feeling he has that makes him _ act _ and make _ decisions _ that create this fate of theirs. The decision to not kill him in the Valley. The decision to retreat at the hideout. The decision to join the allied shinobi in the war for his family and his best friend.

In another life, would it be the same? The actions would be different due to the circumstances, but would he be drawn back in every time? Looking at him now, it's hard to imagine ever being anywhere else but by his side.

Yes, Sasuke supposed he would be bound to love Naruto in every life.

He needs to say it before they go for good.

His hand twitched, trying to get some control of his muscles as he grips the other hand as tightly as he can and immediately feels a squeeze back. And sasuke has still not looked away from his now defeated and hopeless blue eyes. Naruto's mouth gapes open and closed, trying but hesitating. Then finally…

"Sah…," he pants, his voice was damaged and tired, "Sasuke, I need to tell you. I-"

_ Love you. _

"I know." He smiles softly.

Naruto shatters right then, tears streaming down his cheeks and clenching his jaw to keep it in.

"It's okay, Naruto." It's the first time in years that he's felt happy. "I've always known. I do too."

Instead of a sob, all that comes out is a strong exhale that masks a quiet whimper. Naruto steadied his breathing to the same slow and shallow inhale as Sasuke's. His chakra getting a bit cooler.

Time's almost out.

But he and Naruto look up to the sky in silence, and Sasuke doesn't feel so afraid to let go.

"Thank you." Sasuke doesn't need to look back to know he's smiling. "For being my friend."

Sasuke nods, "And you… for forgiving me."

Their fingers intertwine.

"Together."

"Mm."

Their going away together, from all this world has done to them. They're not fulfilling the reincarnation prophecy. This is the last time. They're not dying in vain, or as enemies. Sasuke and Naruto have been friends, rivals, traitors, _ imperfect people,_ but never enemies. They're letting go for good. To the other side. To the better place. Their fight is over.

And they think that's perfectly fine.

**Author's Note:**

> been thinking about this kind of ending for a while so i wrote it. ahadkxjsj i love tragic soulmates i'm sorry.
> 
> twitter: bIueseau


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